Prestigious award for Exbury Gardens as thousands of camellias burst into flower

The team at Exbury Gardens in the New Forest are celebrating after receiving the news that it has been designated as a prestigious ‘Camellia Garden of Excellence’ – the highest accolade that can be bestowed on a garden displaying the popular spring flowers. The award is announced just as thousands of camellias are bursting into […]



Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants Prepare for Chelsea Flower Show

All systems go at Hardy’s Hampshire Nursery as the Chelsea Flower Show juggernaut rolls on with thousands of plants in and out of hot houses, being coaxed on and held back. Rosy Hardy says, “it never gets easier, every year is different to the one that preceded it so there is no pattern for success […]



Sparsholt College announce partnership for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2014

Sparsholt College Hampshire has formed a partnership with global packaging company Huhtamaki which will give their 2014 RHS Chelsea Flower garden, The Paper Chase, a truly sustainable theme. Huhtamaki’s environmentally friendly BioWare packaging range runs through every element of the College’s garden for the forthcoming flower show. The manufacturing process and green credentials have inspired […]



Global launch of online Masters degree in English Language Teaching

An online Masters degree in English Language Teaching is being launched worldwide thanks to a collaboration between the University of Southampton and the British Council. Combining the University of Southampton’s reputation as a leading UK institution with the British Council’s expertise in English language teaching and for promoting quality UK higher education on a global […]



Mayoral visit welcomed in Winchester’s flood-hit villages

Senior figures from the City Council toured a number of villages in the Winchester District on Friday (21 February) to see for themselves the tremendous efforts of local volunteers in dealing with the on-going flooding. The Mayor of Winchester, Cllr Ernie Jeffs, The Mayoress of Winchester, Mrs Barbara Jeffs and Deputy Leader, Cllr Robert Humby, […]



Hortus Loci Source and Grow for Four Chelsea Flower Show Gardens

Come the third week in May, four Main Avenue gardens will be resplendent with Hortus Loci plants and trees. This year Hortus Loci MD’s Robin Wallis and Mark Straver are backing the crop of ‘young gun’ designers whose work seems to be creating the biggest buzz in 2014. Matthew Childs won best in show at […]



Winchester: Cultural Capital

Winchester City Council is inviting all those in the cultural and creative industries in the Winchester District to a conference on Friday 28 February (9am to 1.30pm) at the Middle Brook Centre in Winchester City Centre. The free conference is to launch the Council’s new strategy: Culture, Innovation and the Winchester Economy. The strategy aims […]



More family fun promised at Exbury as new Children’s Play Area set to open

Exbury has always been a firm favourite with families visiting the New Forest, but this year there is even more reason to discover the award-winning woodland gardens. Alongside the exclusive spring season ‘Gilbury Lane’ garden – opening for the first time in 2014 and planted with over 200 named varieties of Camellias – will be […]



Coping with the floods in Winchester

Winchester City Council staff are working hard to minimise disruption caused to residents by the increasing number of flooding incidents across the district. The main focus of problems is Hambledon, where temporary alternative arrangements for the collection of refuse have been put in place because waste collection vehicles cannot reach properties. Three communal bin collection […]



Extended season for Lachenalias at Exbury as interest in plant surges

The UK’s pre-eminent collection of Lachenalias (the ‘leopard lily’) will be displayed at Exbury Gardens in the New Forest between Sat 15 March and Sun 6 April 2014. The exhibition, hosted in the Gardens’ Five Arrows Gallery, will be staged for an extra week this year as interest in the South African bulb continues to rise.  Nicholas de Rothschild, President of the […]